


my light in an ocean of dark

by wonderwall_mp4



Series: legacies [1]
Category: Legacies (TV 2018)
Genre: F/F, Gay, handon vibes though, love confessions n shit, penelope is a hologram from that crystal hope used in 1x15, posie - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-23
Updated: 2019-03-23
Packaged: 2019-11-28 06:11:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,278
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18204578
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wonderwall_mp4/pseuds/wonderwall_mp4
Summary: josie learns about the prism and decides to have a conversation with penelope.





	my light in an ocean of dark

**Author's Note:**

> i swear to god i didn't copy this from kai we're just really connected
> 
> also it's really short and shit i'm sorry
> 
> i hope you have as much feelings reading it as i did while writing it
> 
> (title from miracle by chvrches)

The second that Hope mentioned that prism to her over lunch one day, Josie knew what she needed it for. It only took a little bit of convincing and promising she wouldn’t break it before Hope caved in to Josie’s puppy eyes and handed it over. It was a weighty, solid crystal and the shards dug into Josie’s palm as she carried it out to the table by the lake.

Setting it on the grainy wood, she stared at it for a moment. What was she supposed to do now? She adjusted it to make sure the light was hitting it. Still nothing. She growled in frustration and turned, balling her hands in her hair. 

“Hey, Jojo.”

Josie shrieked and whirled, and sure enough, standing there was the witch herself, Penelope Park. She had a coy grin on her face. “You’re wearing my jacket,” she pointed out.

“Wow,” breathed Josie.

“Really? Do I look that good?” Penelope struck a pose.

Josie laughed delightedly. “No! I mean, yes, you do look good. It’s just- the resemblance is uncanny.”

Penelope shrugged. “Patting yourself on the back, are you? You must remember me well.”

“I look at that picture of you every single day,” admitted Josie. 

“The one we took during lunch a few days after. I’d just transferred after finding out I was a witch, and you wanted a good picture of me for your wall,” remembered Penelope. “I said, ‘so you can stare at me whenever you like?’”

“I got so red,” laughed Josie. “And you pinched my cheek and said I was cute.”

“You still are,” said Penelope quietly.

Josie looked down at her feet, feeling her heart twist. “Don’t say it like that. Like you’re her.”

“I  _ am _ her. The version of her that lives in your mind, I mean.”

“But not… not her.” Josie’s brow furrowed. ”The Penelope that-”

“The Penelope that you took that picture of,” finished Penelope. “The one you were with. The one who’s jacket you’re wearing, the one that broke your heart.”

“I kept that picture even after you broke my heart.” Josie looked up at her wistfully.

“I would apologize for that, but I guess I’m not really me,” said Penelope sadly. “So what did you want to talk to Penelope about?”

“I guess just wanted to see you again… to see her again.” Josie twisted her hands together. “Phones get pretty haywire around magic. And even if they did work, what would I say? I don’t want to tell her I love her over the pho-” Josie clapped a hand over her mouth.

“Well, then.”

“I-” stammered Josie. “Oh my God, I love you back. I love her back.” She sat down hard on the wood table bench. 

“My back? Why not my front?” Penelope waggled her eyebrows.

Josie choked out a sob-laugh. “You perv.”

Penelope came to sit next to her. “This reminds me of, like, a Black Mirror episode. Which one is it, Be Right Back? Where the guy dies and the girl gets a fake version of him, but it isn’t the same?”

“We watched that one together. It was the only one we watched that didn’t give me nightmares.” Josie went to nudge Penelope, but she flickered as her arm went right through. “And besides, you’re not dead.”

“That, I am not. You do feel like you’re talking to a ghost, though, don’t you?”

“Yeah,” Josie admitted. “It’s just difficult, you know?”

“And what’s so difficult about it?” asked Penelope.

“I spent so long trying to hate you. I thought I did hate you. But you kissed me, and I kissed you, and all these gross, messy feelings came tumbling out-” a tear streaked down Josie’s cheek. “It’s funny how quickly hate can turn to love.”

“And vice versa,” Penelope responded. “Judging by how long it took you cut her out.” Her tone was slightly bitter.

“It was a defense mechanism,” Josie explained. “I know that now. I just don’t know how I feel about you anymore.”

“That’s a  _ huge _ lie.” Penelope’s eyes were soft. She looked so very much like herself in that moment, and it made Josie’s stomach ache with longing and regret and a million other emotions. “You just told her how you felt.”

Josie threw her hands in the air in frustration. “But it’s so much more than just that! Of course I love you, I’ve loved you probably since the moment I met you! It’s more than just black and white, love and hate.”

“And why not?” Penelope asked patiently.

“You hurt me. You broke my heart.” Josie bit her lip. “But the thing is, now I realize you did it to protect me, and how the hell am I supposed to feel about that, huh? You told me you loved me, and the second I realized I loved you too, you just left!” Josie was shouting now. “You know how I feel about people leaving, and you did it anyway, and now all I have left of you are your school jackets and this stupid crystal!” she fumed. Penelope smiled. “What are you smiling about?”

“That- what you just said- is the real reason you wanted to talk to her,” said Penelope. “That’s how you really feel.”

Josie crossed her arms. “Okay then, genius, how do I really feel?”

“You love her, but you’re afraid of her hurting you again.” Penelope placed a hand on her arm, and it felt like a breeze brushing against her. “But you know deep down she would stop hurting you if you stopped hurting her.”

Josie mulled over that for a second. “Like… when I called you Satan incarnate, and all those other things?”

“Of course that hurt her, but that’s not what I’m talking about and you know it.” Penelope rolled her eyes. “You don’t have to play dumb with me, Josie. I’m literally part of your subconscious.”

“So that’s not what- oh.” Josie thought back to their conversation before Penelope- the real Penelope- left. “You mean being selfless.”

“Duh!” Penelope spread her hands. “That’s, like, her whole thing! The selfless and the selfish keep the world spinning, blah blah blah. She told you about the Merge because of it.”

“Are you saying that I can only love you fully when I learn how to be selfish?”

Penelope put a finger to her chin. “Selfish may be too strong of a word. She just wants you to realize that you have worth outside of your sister.”

“I love my sister, but…” Josie inhaled. “I think I could be selfish for you.”

“Gotcha! In the end, that’s what you really wanted to say to her.” Penelope nodded, satisfied. “And that’s manipulation, baby!” She did jazz hands.

“Oh, you-” Josie went to shove her, but her hands went right through. “I forgot about that. That’s weird.”

“So are we done here?” asked Penelope. 

“I just…” Josie sighed. “I wish I could hug you.”

“Jojo, I’m a hologram. A full-on, beam-me-up, Carmen Sandiego-villain hologram. Are you asking me to make myself solid? No can do.” Penelope shook her head sadly. “However, you’re thinking, ‘would I really fly to Belgium for a girl?’. The answer is yes. Go get me! I mean, her!”

“Okay? Okay!” Josie leapt up. “But what would I even say?”

“Exactly what you just said to me, but make it gayer.” Penelope winked. “I know I would like some more tearful kisses and shit like that. See ya on the flip side?”

Josie picked up the crystal, and Penelope disappeared in the blink of an eye. She stared at it for a second before running as fast as she could back towards Salvatore.

**Author's Note:**

> obviously, my writing's not perfect (although it's close), so i'd appreciate if you, dear reader, would drop a comment telling me what i should do better! you can even stop by if you want to say something nice, or if you want to argue with someone, as long as you keep it civil on my lawn. thanks for reading!
> 
> twitter; @mazieveposting  
> tumblr; @communistdanni


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